WASHINGTON (AFP) -- US President Donald Trump on Thursday rejected reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was ailing, criticizing his frequent nemesis CNN for running the story. "I think the report was incorrect, let me just put it that way," Trump told reporters. "I'm hearing they used old documents." Trump declined to say if he had direct knowledge from North Korea that Kim was fine. He instead attacked cable news network CNN, with which the US leader has an acri

The South Korean government is pushing to restart a long-stalled project to reconnect railways between the two Koreas, despite uncertainties surrounding inter-Korean relations. 　 Seoul’s Unification Ministry on Thursday said it has designated the construction of a railway along the east coast as an inter-Korean cooperative business, providing legal grounds for it to be exempted from a preliminary feasibility study in order to shorten the construction period. 　 The decision was made dur

The US government has extensive contingency plans in place in case North Korean leader Kim Jong-un dies or is unable to rule due to failing health, Fox News reported Wednesday, adding that the plans involve China to address the potential for a mass-scale humanitarian crisis.　 Any mass exodus of North Korean refugees would need China’s support, according to unnamed sources in the US government the new channel cited. The report came amid lingering speculation concerning Kim’s well-be

North Korea appears to be conducting business as usual without any abnormal signs, a unification ministry official said Thursday, amid persisting speculation over leader Kim Jong-un's health condition. Speculation about Kim's health problems spiked after CNN reported earlier this week that the US has intelligence that Kim is in "grave danger" after a surgery. South Korean officials have rejected the speculation, saying no unusual signs have been detected that suggest something may be

South Korea has approved an aid organization's plan to send protective clothing to North Korea to help it fight the new coronavirus, a unification ministry official said Thursday. The approval was granted Tuesday, allowing the organization to send 20,000 items of protective clothing worth around 200 million won ($162,000), the official told reporters, without providing other details, such as the group's identity. The move came about three weeks after the ministry gave the green light to an un

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Wednesday sent a reply to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad who congratulated him on the anniversary of his late grandfather's birth last week, the North's state media reported. The report by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) came amid media reports that Kim has a health problem, including one by CNN that said the United States is looking into intelligence that Kim is in "grave danger" after surgery. "Kim Jong-un, in his message, e

WASHINGTON -- A top US military official said Wednesday he assumes North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is still in full control of his country's armed forces despite reports he may be seriously ill. Joint Chiefs of Staff Vice Chairman Gen. John Hyten said he has no information to add to the reports about Kim's health. "I can tell you that in the intel, I don't have anything to confirm or deny anything along those lines," he said during a Pentagon press briefing. "So I assume that K

WAHSINGTON -- US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday that the United States is watching closely what's happening inside North Korea amid reports that its leader Kim Jong-un is seriously ill, but gave no other details. "As the president said last evening ... we're watching closely what's taking place there, but I don't have anything to add," he said during a press briefing. President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday that the US doesn't know about Kim's health condition.

North Korea has launched a website that offers information on public health and the coronavirus amid stringent efforts to prevent a virus outbreak on its soil. The site, www.moph.gov.kp, run by the North's health ministry, provides information on the country's health policies and sanitation, and promotes various achievements in science and technology. Although the first post on the website was published in April 2019, the number of posts has increased sharply this year, raising speculation th

Two constant threads that have run through the history of North Korea: Rule by the Kim dynasty, and speculation about the health of its secretive leaders. The latest incident took place this week when US officials said Monday they were unsure of Kim Jong-un’s health after they were told he was in critical condition after undergoing cardiovascular surgery. South Korea’s presidential office subsequently said Kim was conducting normal activities in a rural part of the country. Tru

Conflicting reports about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s health highlight the intelligence challenges faced in dealing with the security-obsessed nation, observers said Wednesday.    　 Admitting the lack of intelligence access, US President Donald Trump said he did not know the status of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s health, in response to reports that Kim was gravely ill.    　 “These are reports that came out, and we don’t know, we don&rsquo

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday he doesn't know about the health condition of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un amid reports he may be seriously ill. "These are reports that came out, and we don't know. We don't know," Trump said at a White House coronavirus press briefing. "I can only say this: I wish him well. Because if he is in the kind of condition that the reports say, that the news is saying, that's a very serious condition, as you know, but I wish him well." T

South Korea on Tuesday played down reports of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un falling seriously ill after surgery, saying nothing in particular signaled Kim's failing health or indicated an emergency in the reclusive country. "So far we haven't come across any unusual signs in North Korea," said Kang Min-seok, spokesperson for Cheong Wa Dae, in a message to reporters sent hours after CNN said Kim was in critical condition following surgery, citing an unidentified US official with dir

US media reports Kim is in 'grave danger' after surgery, but Seoul says there are no signs for Kim's failing health

A South Korean official on Tuesday played down a CNN report that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was in critical condition after surgery. Citing a US official with direct knowledge of the matter, the US news channel said Kim appeared to be in "grave danger" after surgery. An earlier report by a South Korean online media outlet specializing in North Korea news said that Kim had undergone heart surgery and was in recovery. Kim was not present at the celebration of the birthday of his